singability: do you sing your best when leading?
do you sing your best when leading?
i “don’t” per se… when i lead worship, i lead in a vocal manner that others can follow: clean tone, on pitch, with no fancy bells & whistles (those are better employed during special music, etc).
my goal, above all else, is to help others participate in the music of our church. to present music that is user-friendly. to help them sing to God. and i think “singability” plays a key role.
i use this term “singability” to gauge:
1) the vocal range reflected in the keying of a song. ex: the vocal range of “O Holy Night” makes it difficult for the average voice to sing
2) the cadence of words/phrases. ex: the cadence of some of David Crowder’s music is not the most “singable”
3) the melody’s level of difficulty required for the average church-goers vocal abilities.
what about you? do you consider the average joe’s vocal abilities when planning worship? and do you sing your best when leading?
I think beauty is as important to singabilty. Will I remember the tune? So, that tension between simple and beautiful sometimes means the range or rhythm might be out of the typical formula. Really, it might make the rest of a very singable set more interesting to have one song stand out.
rich: i appreciate your comment, and agree that beauty is a needed element of worship songs. beauty is what carries the inspiration and passion of music. i think much of our “worship” is set to music because music quickly engages the heart as well as the mind.
sometimes, beauty might be simple. sometimes beauty might be wrapped in an ornate composition. example: How Great Thou Art. EXCELLENT song. BEAUTIFUL song. but difficult to sing because the range is so wide – the width is necessary to accurately convey the feeling of the song… so that’s not one to toss out the window. its a keeper!!
thanks for stopping by.
mandy
[...] On her Blending Worship blog, worship leader Mandy Thompson presents an interesting question on “singability: do you sing your best when leading?” [...]
Sojourn Music » Blog Archive » “Singability” In Worship Music: Can The Congregation Follow Where The Worship Leaders Go? said this on February 12, 2008 at 11:28 pm |
I do try to think about the congregations ability to join in a song when planning a set. Even with the fairly concrete factors you mentioned, it’s not easy to accurately predict which songs will really ‘catch on’ with a congregation.
I definitely don’t sing my best when leading…. when I’m leading and also playing, it’s even less best.
My best singing is probably when I’m singing with another worship leader.
I am constantly lower the keys of songs to allow the congregation to sing with me. It isn’t a show, so it would be good for them to worship too.
I usually sing well on Sundays, however, yesterday I felt off. The funny thing is that some told me that they enjoyed my voice yesterday.
“it isn’t s show”… peter – GREAT words.
and, yeah, sometimes when i feel “off” someone comes up and tells me how much they were blessed. then, i am humbled to realize that its not i but Christ in me! praise Him!!
One thing I have always tried to do is to pick melodies that are easy to learn or remember. I haven’t however been too concerned with the key of the song. I have always picked songs that fit my range, so that it is easier for me to lead and clearly communicate the song. I am more concerned with people understanding the words than actually singing it. I tend to see people sing songs all the time and not even know what they are singing. So it is key for me to effectively communicate the song and lyrics. We are often choosing music that preps for the sermon or ties in some way to what is to be taught, so I always want the lyrics heard and understood clearly.
As for whether or not I sing my best, that is probably up for interpretation
I do know that I should be singing with good technique so as to not mumble and to be on pitch, but I do not need to be fancy or showy, cause that’s not what it’s about like Peter said. It can tend to be distracting. But clarity and pitch should be expected.
Last Christmas, I lowered “O Holy Night” to the key of A. I led our women’s Bible study group (about 150 voices) in singing all three verses. So many ladies came to me afterwards to thank me: they’d never actually caught the words to the song because they’d never actually sang them. Because they couldn’t reach the notes, they always stopped singing.
This Christmas, our women’s ministry praise team was invited to lead worship in “big church” on Dec. 23rd. Of course, we sang “O Holy Night” in A, all three verses. It was wonderful to hear approximately 400 voices, both services, singing. What was even better was watching their faces as they “got” the words of the song.
I think I do sing my best when I’m leading. When leading others into God’s throne room, there’s an accountability I feel–to give everything I have, musically and spiritually. If I find that “tunnel vision” between me and God, and lead worship by truly worshipping, the Holy Spirit does amazing things. When I’m leading, my focus is less on how I’m sounding and more on the interaction that’s taking place between those of us on stage, God in heaven, and the congregation. It’s one big circle of worship.
Thanks, Mandy, for having this blog, and for allowing us to participate.